Tag Archives: commitment

I don’t know how to start this but perhaps I should start by setting minds at ease. No, I don’t have cancer or other lesser known incurable illnesses, and yes, there’s something I can still do about it.

I had a doctor’s appointment today and beforehand I was super worked up and this time not the general “I hate doctor’s and doctor’s offices” kind of anxiety. I had been feeling off for a while now and suspected that I could possibly have diabetes and today that was confirmed. Well… sort of. My doctor called it a “gray area” because some doctors say that at this point a patient would definitely be diabetic, while other doctors — including mine — say that we are not quiiiteee diabetic but are “pre-diabetic.”*

Let me back it up a little bit. As a Pacific Islander, my risk of diabetes is higher, and I have a history of diabetes in my family. (Needless to say, I always hate when people who are about to chow down on something too sugary/unhealthy joke that they are having diabetes for dessert.) Today, we took an initial first test and while that got whisked off, my doctor and I were having our usual chat/check-up when another lady pops her head in and tells my doctor a number. We stopped talking about whatever it was we were talking about and my doctor says that I am “pre-diabetic.” There’s not much that I know about these things so I’m confused about the numbers at first, but those words put it into perspective.

It’s like they say, it’s one thing to know and another to hear it said out loud. This doesn’t change your life in any way, but it does mine. Using numbers, I can tell you that I am .2%* away from the official diagnoses for diabetes. Using words, my doctor said that I need to “Act like I’m diabetic. Eat like I’m diabetic, exercise like I’m diabetic, live like I’m diabetic.”

That’s for sure going to be hard. And so far, this post is the first that I’ve said about any of this, other than to my family. I’m not super psyched about being so public about it, but I wanted to make this an opportunity to make it known in some capacity so I would feel even more accountable to good behavior on my part and really living life like I am diabetic. Someone very close to me said that at one point they were told that they were “pre-diabetic” and that they were in denial about it for so long because they “didn’t want to have diabetes” and never did anything about it and now their numbers are off the charts. So far, I’m doing okay. The nurse brought in the diabetes kit and my doctor sent it away so I didn’t come home with one today. What this means for me though is a change of lifestyle and for sure, a kick in the behind.

Not coming home with a kit almost felt really great. It means that they’re not seeing proteins where there shouldn’t be proteins or any damage to any organs in my body. I said it “almost” felt really great because there’s still a lot I have to do on my end to really feel great about not having the kit. I’ve been prescribed diabetes school (which I didn’t realize existed) and sent home with lots of handouts on measures I need to be taking to make sure I don’t have to come home with that kit.

I’ve already starting making some of those changes this very evening and made this post to acknowledge and put to words what perhaps my mind can’t/won’t comprehend. Life changes are good sometimes and changing my lifestyle to combat diabetes is one of them if I make sure to stick to it.

This is as far as the gray area goes. What I do to make sure I’m in the clear is now black or white.

Thanks to those of you still reading my blog and keeping up with my sporadic posts. For those that know me and that read my blog, sorry I won’t necessarily get the chance to chat with each of you personally about this (or any other post for that matter) and I appreciate your discretion and sensitivity to the fact that I might not want to talk about these things in person/all the time.

*terms and stats are as accurate as they were described to me by my healthcare provider.

Love, Man

{I will post the funnier side of the doctor’s appointment at some point so we (and by we I mean I) are not so bogged down by heavier matters.}

Inhale, Exhale. Inhale, Exhale
I think it’s time for a heart to heart. A… screen to screen? We won’t get lost in the technicalities. This post is almost a confession of sorts. Or maybe a call to action… for myself. No, no that’s not right. This is a….. hmm. Let’s figure this out later and just get to the post, shall we?

Blogging is really a big deal for me. I’m sure it is for a lot of people, and I’m one of those people. I’ve always been a pretty private person and here I am wanting a blog where I can just type my worries away and strangers will be reading about the things that make me angry or that make me want to cry or make me want to scream… you get the idea. I want that kind of blog but at the same time, do I really want most of my life broadcast like this? Ha! I guess that’s what my problem is— I’m a private person with a lot to say, so now where does that leave me?

Where am I trying to go with this?

Thinks for a minute.

Dear reader, I think I’ve found it. This post is a commitment. I’m committing to be more open and to share more of me.

Hopefully you stick around while I do my best to keep this “commitment” to myself.

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keep up with me, would ya?

Get To Know Me

I've always had trouble with "About me" sections. What am I supposed to say? I suppose I've never liked the way it felt like a "tell us all your accolades!" type of situation. However, I can say that I am new to life, but it feels as though life and I have known each other for a long time. I love the ocean, the stars, the moon, the sky. I have this wonderfully crippling capacity to love. I love that I have so much love to give, but I have to say that I do have moments when empathy gets really hard, and I wish I was a little more distant. Luckily though, I can naturally gravitate toward loving again!